Living in the Past

Artwork by Michael DiMilo

By Geoff Carter

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.

–Thomas Jefferson

We’ve been taught to respect and believe these hallowed words since we were children. Of course, after a close examination of U.S.  history, no one—except perhaps a child—is naïve enough to believe them. Shortly after these words were written, our founding fathers penned the Constitution, the blueprint of our government, which stated that anyone born in the United States, or naturalized here, is a citizen. Everyone, that is, except for African Americans, Native Americans, non-English speakers, or Asian Americans. 

Slavery was still legal in 1787 when the Constitution was ratified. Thomas Jefferson, our third President, was a slaveowner, as were several other of our founding fathers. Also, even though the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution explicitly state the importance of popular sovereignty, that legitimate governments are those “deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed”, only property-owning white men were allowed to vote. So “the Governed” did not include women, Native Americans, poor white men, or slaves (although under the Three-fifths Compromise, three-fifths of one slave counted toward a state’s population total—and subsequent representation in Congress). The interests of rich white men, many of them slaveowners, were those prioritized by our founding fathers. Many of them dreaded the idea of sharing the vote with ordinary citizens.

Alexander Hamilton wrote in 1783, “I have an indifferent [low] opinion of the honesty of this country, and ill foreboding as to its future system” and “Your people, sir, is a great beast.” He was not alone in his distrust of the masses. In fact, the Founding Fathers, in Article II of the Constitution stated that “electors”, not the electorate, would be responsible for choosing a new president. Though not explicitly named, these “electors” are in fact the Electoral College, which, to this day, is responsible for deciding presidential elections. It doesn’t matter who wins the popular vote; the Electoral College is the final arbiter.

Al Gore won the popular vote in 2000, but it didn’t matter. George Bush still became president. Hilary Clinton earned almost three million more popular votes than Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election, but still lost. Why? Because, despite the fact they lost the popular vote, Bush and Trump won the electoral college. Efforts to reform this anachronistic institution have been going on for years, but to do so would require a Constitutional amendment which requires a two-thirds majority in both Houses of Congress and ratification by three-quarters of the states. These days, you can’t get two-thirds of Congress to agree on whether the sun is out or not. 

James Madison and the other architects of our government got a lot right. Our Constitution is a magnificent blueprint for a well-balanced democracy. The Bill of Rights unequivocally declares personal freedoms in America. But their conception of equality left a little bit—even then—to be desired. It is unconscionable that slavery was allowed to continue in the new republic. And, for all their lip service to democracy, it is—at the very least—hypocritical that these men went to such lengths to ensure that their interests would be protected in the electoral process. 

Today’s politicians—especially Republicans—love to reference the Founding Fathers on matters relating to Christian values, the right to bear arms, personal freedoms, and our democracy. Unfortunately, the Republicans are (most of the time) not getting it right. Members of the Far Right have insisted that our nation was founded on “Christian ideals”, ignoring the explicitly stated intentions of the nation’s founders to avoid just that. There is deliberately no mention made of God or a higher power anywhere in the Constitution. James Madison stated, “The government of the United States is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion.” It doesn’t get much clearer than that. Of course, when issues like reproductive rights, gay marriage, or prayer in public schools comes up, the religious right tends to overlook Mr. Madison’s intentions. 

The same is true of the Second Amendment. While explicitly allowing for a “well-regulated militia… the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed,” it is doubtful that the Founding Fathers felt that selling AR-15s to unqualified and unlicensed users was necessary, or even prudent. 

One of the founding principles that the present Republicans have been trying to resuscitate is the Founding Fathers’ attitudes toward voting rights. When the Constitution was written, only white men of property could vote. Period. But over the years, this paragon of privilege has been slowly worn down by enlightened attitudes and new law. 

In 1856, all white men—even poor ones—were enfranchised. In 1870, citizens could no longer be denied the vote because of race. African Americans—freed slaves—were given the right to vote. In 1920, women were granted that same right, but it wasn’t until 1952 that people of Asian ancestry could vote. 1n 1971, the voting age was lowered to eighteen. 

Republicans today, apparently trying to revitalize eighteenth century values, are pushing legislation aimed at restricting the voting rights of American citizens. Cutting down on early voting, requiring photo IDs at polling places, limiting mail-in voting, and eliminating automatic or same-day registration are some of the proposals making their way through Republican statehouses. States have already been reducing the numbers of polling places, particularly in predominantly Democratic—typically minority—neighborhoods. Georgia, a key swing state, just passed a ridiculous law making it illegal to pass out water to citizens waiting in line to vote. 

These twenty-first century Republicans envision an America of their forefathers: an America that was ruled by rich white men, where poor farmers, women, and African Americans had no voice, an American government that was predicated on exploitation, genocide, and imperialism. 

These Republicans know that to attain this lofty goal they will need to silence the voices of the unchosed in the utopian vision of the gleaming (white) city on the hill. It will be a long downhill battle, but leaders like McConnell, McCarthy, Cruz, and Johnson will stop at nothing to take us back into the dark ages of democracy. 

The Founding Fathers were architects of one of the greatest governments in the world, but they weren’t perfect. They did recognize that societies change and so designed the Constitution to be an elastic document. And, as America has changed, so has our Constitution. We’ve come a long way correcting some of the mistakes made during the dawn of our nation. Jefferson and Adams would’ve been proud of the growth of this nation. 

Let’s not let a mob of self-righteous and selfish demagogues tear it all down.